12 hour DUI impound law “Hailey’s Law” now in effect

Senate Bill 5000 known as “Hailey’s Law is now in effect and police are using the law to impound vehicles of drunken drivers for 12 hours after they make a DUI arrest.

Hailey’s law was enacted to keep intoxicated persons from getting behind the wheel of their vehicle until a suitable sobering up period has passed.

It may be surprising to some, but a person who is arrested for suspicion of DUI can be booked and processed and released in sometimes as little as 1 to 2 hours. Some of those DUI drivers then were taking possession of their vehicle while they were still intoxicated and sometimes getting into motor vehicle accidents.

In one such case, Hailey French, was seriously injured in a head-on accident when she her car was hit by a driver who had been arrested for driving under the influence just two hours prior to the accident.

Hailey’s Law allows police to call a tow truck company to deal with the DUI driver’s car. If another registered owner of the vehicle is not intoxicated, they can get the vehicle out of impound in less than 12 hours.